


Dismantling Oppressive Establishments, Teamwork, And Other Things Your Coach Never Taught You

by AnnaBolena



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Enjolras hates buzzfeed, Grantaire is a sad bastard, Modern AU: Sports edition, Multi, Social Media Overkill, The revolution is captured in various online articles, excessive use of cursives I kind of want to apologize for
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-11
Updated: 2018-11-11
Packaged: 2019-08-22 01:00:56
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,841
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16587719
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnnaBolena/pseuds/AnnaBolena
Summary: “Don’t you see why we have to keep fighting? Now more than ever? They took your twitter account from you, Grantaire!”The thing about Enjolras is that he truly sounds like this is an outrage instead of the logical reaction their PR team chose in the face of his feeble attempt at generating dissent.a.k.a. How Enjolras singlehandedly tries to end prejudice, as told by various Newspapers and Grantaire





	Dismantling Oppressive Establishments, Teamwork, And Other Things Your Coach Never Taught You

**Author's Note:**

> Things you need to accept before reading this:  
> \- This is more self-indulgent stuff that I write to amuse myself when I get hella sad  
> \- I deeply appreciate Raymond Walsh, who currently plays Grantaire on West End  
> -I did not see if any of the tweets exceeded the character limit, I am sloppy.  
> \- Suspension of disbelief is required: none of these football teams exist in France, but I didn't want to properly research the real ones and possibly risk stepping on wounded fan toes. Football followings are intense.  
> \- They get loads more recognition than football stars usually get in this, but just go along with that and don't think about the plot holes I didn't have the public funds to fix. Not in this economy, hny. Ok thx, please enjoy.

**C-Squared scores together and with each other? –** Source:  13/10/2017, Monde du Sport France, online edition

Author: Zachary Plisse

Because of their remarkable synergy, Felix Courfeyrac (24) and Henri Jamal Combeferre (25), have become something of a renowned duo on the field and off. Respectively attacking and defensive midfielders for Paris’ beloved - among locals - top tier Football Club ENB, their coordination is unparalleled.

Often appearing in interviews side by side, the duo has given the impression of a close, male friendship fed by mutual respect and shared interests.

_[Picture: Courfeyrac on Combeferre’s shoulders in the midst of celebrating last year’s victory over FC St. Just, both men grinning at each other as confetti sticks to skin and fills the air. Cheering teammates surround them, ca. 10/2016]_

Both men have not admitted to any serious relationships in recent years, since Courfeyrac publicly announced he broke things off with the never properly identified ‘friend’ referred to only as Maria in August 2016, and Combeferre has told reporters he wasn’t currently considering a relationship.

_[Picture: Combeferre and Courfeyrac, arm in arm and sweaty during a post-game interview, obviously exhausted but grinning, ca. 11/2015]_

 Now it seems that overly dedicated reporters might have found the cause for their retreat from romantic pursuit. Three days ago, the two men were spotted having dinner together in the South of France – where Combeferre’s parents reside when in France and not with Doctors Without Borders – looking cozier than expected even of close friends.

_[Picture: Combeferre and Courfeyrac photographed through a restaurant window. Both men wear caps and sunglasses but are recognizable nonetheless. Combeferre’s hand is on Courfeyrac’s face, seemingly wiping some cream from the corner of Courfeyrac’s mouth while looking quite enamored. -10/10/2017]_

More damningly still, in the earlier hours of last night, our office received photos of the Combeferre family pool that clearly show: Both men are interested in relationships, but certainly not in the way we expected!

_[Picture: Courfeyrac sits at the pool’s edge, shirtless, with his legs wrapped firmly around Combeferre’s waist. His hands are buried in Combeferre’s hair, dripping wet. They are kissing heatedly. - 12/10/2017]_

The jig seems to be up as we wait for confirmation from either the men themselves or someone close to them. As opposed to the question of whether or not their defeat by CDL Toulouse two years ago was due to a biased referee, this leaves little room for interpretation.

+

 **Double Resignation follows damning photos –** Source: Les Jeunes, online edition, 18/10/2017

_Not even a week after photos of passionate embraces between two of ENB Paris’ top players leaked and astounded fans, F. Courfeyrac (24) and H.J. Combeferre (25), known affectionately as C-Squared among their fanbase, abruptly announced their decision to leave the team – via Twitter. _

_[Screengrab: @CourfHEYrac: we’re out (pun intended) of there, hasta la vista you assholes, @HJ_Combeferre and myself just blew this popsicle stand (and maybe each other, fight me) – 17/10/2017, 22:09 EST]_

_Minutes later, a slightly more succinct addition followed._

_[Screengrab: @HJ_Combeferre: @CourfHEYrac + I mutually decided to leave ENB Paris after private photos leaked our relationship to the public. We feel that our future lies elsewhere but… (1/4)_

_@HJ_Combeferre:…with each other. Both of us would like to continue to pursue football if it is at all possible, but current circumstances forbid it and so we’re turning our focus to the campaign for building schools in my native country, first started in 2014… (2/4)_

_@HJ_Combeferre: …We are both extremely grateful for the opportunities we have been given & wish we could have announced our relationship on our own terms... (3/4)_

_@HJ_Combeferre: Our sympathies lie with @AJENJ and our other teammates, it was never our intention to leave you hanging the way we have had to. We apologize, ange. – 17/10/2017, 22:17, EST]_

_ENB Paris was quick to respond, claiming to feel a profound loss at the sudden departure._

_[Screengrab: @ENBofficiel: Shocked and disgusted by the sudden, careless departure of two of our own, this isn’t what we wanted for the fans or the league! Disgraceful. – 17/10/2017, 23:46, EST]_

_Courfeyrac and Combeferre remained silent in the face of such blatant criticism, but one of their teammates didn’t._

_[Screengrab: @Granthair: wats a fkn disgriace iswut u asshles r doin two those to step thfuck up ENB u cocks. – 18/10/2017, 01:29, EST]_

_Teammate, Parisian legend, and record-breaking ENB Goalkeeper, Giuseppe Grantaire, voiced error-riddled outrage on behalf of C-squared, presumably intending to write: ‘what is a […] disgrace is what you […]are doing to those two. Step […] up ENB […]’ The 31-year-old French-Italian national is prone to drunk ramblings in the early hours of the morning, but rarely does he resort to such flagrant profanity. Some fans are hopeful that such a strong show of empathy is a sign that Grantaire is coming out of his self-described ‘cynical depression’. ( See the ‘I’m just a sad bastard’ video clip here, ca. 2015, 500k views as of October 2017) _

_What is certain is that fans are in a state of disorientation, and the wait for the whole truth of the matter continues._

_[Screengrab: @MduPlessis: @HJ_Combeferre @CourfHEYrac @Granthair someone explain what’s going on? – 17/10/2017, 22:15, EST_

_@PaulaFCfan: who wants to bet @ENBofficiel made them leave? – 18/10/2017, 2:56 EST_

_@LouisRoulande: @PaulaFCfan: bet, look at their last post-game interview here, that was pure excitement for things to come. – 18/10/2017, 3:03, EST_

_@PaulaFCfan: @LouisRoulande true. Ofc NOW @AJENJ is silent for once. Sth is fishy here. – 18/10/2017, 3:09, EST_

_@LouisRoulande: lol @AJENJ u can hit us w/ that (1/49) abt global warming but the tea on this is 2 hot? WEaK._ _-18/10/2017, 3:11, EST_

_@ANLCEL: @Granthair said it – step the fuck up @ENBofficiel - 18/10/2017, 6:32, EST]_

+

 **Gillenormand-International to break down amidst drama within ENB Paris? Source:** Paris Business Journal, 21/10/2017

Author: Léonie Zusak-Karasovksy

…No statement from the richest man in French Sports himself, but a definite one from his grandson Marius Pontmercy (23), as he fielded questions yesterday in drapery that quite defied the conservative, formally sleek look M. Gillenormand prefers.

[ _Picture: Marius Pontmercy showing off a t-shirt where Love is Love is Love is Love is written in every color of the rainbow, looking unusually determined in the face of reporters.]_

“The treatment of the team’s players in light of their sexual orientation is untenable and I can’t show solidarity with the people who essentially kicked them out,” he claims. M. Pontmercy has up until now been considered a rather timid, private person, and sources say that for him to make a public stand speaks of much deeper outrage than his mostly calm demeanor initially suggests. (“There are depths to him,” a close friend of his, Paris PM Captain Éponine Thenardier, said at his wedding reception in 2015)

Questions rose about his immediate plans for the future, once he stated to have decided to abruptly end any and all contact with his grandfather.

“I am going to sleep with Courfeyrac,” he announces confidently, then blushes, backtracks, “That is to say…I am moving into his guest bedroom, for the time being. I’m a married man. Cosette is coming with me. Gracious.”

Marius Pontmercy and Felix Courfeyrac met while attending school together, and few are surprised that Pontmercy would show sympathy, though many have raised concerns that he should do it so boldly, calling him brash, intrepid to the point of foolishness. It is his youth that shines through in such ill-thought out decisions, business experts say, claiming he has much to learn still about how the world works. (Some have even made bold wagers that he would crawl back to his Grandfather once the initial outcry is silenced, read here.)

Sources close to the inner workings of the investment bank report a huge fight between Grandfather and Grandson, supposedly ending when Pontmercy declared himself very willing to blow up his own shot at a successful career in favor of doing what he considers the right thing.

Only time will let more of the truth crystallize, but there is a sense of things only getting started in the air.

_+_

**“We saw no other way,” C-squared breaks silence on decision to leave ENB Paris - Source:** 25/10/2017, Les Jeunes, online edition

_Two weeks ago, Felix Courfeyrac (24) and Henri Combeferre (25) shocked their fans by leaving ENB Paris in what some have elegantly called ‘abruptly’ and others have more crudely described as ‘cowardly’ or ‘treacherous’. When ENB responded, they claimed to have been monumentally shocked. (The original tweet has since been deleted. C-squared has kept theirs online. Yes, including the blow job ones.)_

_After fan backlash drew interest from even more august papers such as VICE and the online edition of Out Magazine, C-squared once more took to twitter to shed some light on the situation, this time posting a video._

_[ Linked Video: Courfeyrac and Combeferre sit in front of the camera, hands interlaced tightly. Combeferre takes a deep breath and begins.]_

_“When those photos leaked, originally the PR guys wanted us to deny the allegations,” Combeferre says in the video. The defensive midfielder looks tired, worn out, as he explains: “They made it rather clear that a romantic relationship between two men, or perhaps just between the two of us, did not reflect the team’s values.”_

_Courfeyrac goes on to explain: “It would have been dishonest and unfair to Ferre to deny that I am in love with him. We kept the nature of our relationship secret out of a wish for privacy and not at all out of shame.”_

_“It was always agreed between us that eventually we would disclose it,” both men insist. They seem earnest, exchanging careful, reassuring smiles along the way. There is no question of whether or not their love is genuine. Once revealed it has the clear air of something that has grown freely and healthily over the years. ( Click here to read about what body language experts have to say on their dynamic.) _

_“This wasn’t how we wanted to do it, and we certainly didn’t expect to be met with such opposition in this day and age,” Combeferre says regretfully._

_“I’m upset, I think we both are,” Courfeyrac confesses, “But we saw no other way. And I would rather give up pay than give up the love of my life. Call me old-fashioned, if you like.”_

_(Incidentally, “ 5 Minutes of why no one would call Felix A. Courfeyrac old fashioned” on Youtube dropped a few hours after the video and has gathered almost 20,000 views so far.)_

_Fan response to their video has been predominantly positive and supportive. There has been outrage on their behalf by openly bisexual player Michel Lesgles, Striker for ABC 1832, ENB’s competitor in Paris, back in second league after a bout of terrible luck the last two seasons. ( Click here to read about our top picks for their new trainer.) _

_[Screengrab: @BossLaigle: @HJ_Combeferre & @CourfHEYrac are heckin’ adorable and I wish them all the best now that they are free of the homophobic assholes that run @ENBofficiel -24/10/2017, 19:45, EST]_

_The 31-year-old Lesgles has been spotted on dates with ABCs Team Doctor YiWei Joly (29) where intimacy was obvious, but has not announced a split from his long-term partner Musichetta Spatafora (29), simply shrugging and saying he likes both of them. For what it’s worth, Dr. Joly and the lovely Musichetta seem to be alright with playing second fiddle to each other, for now._

_As for C-squared, we at Les Jeunes certainly hope we haven’t heard or seen the last of them._

_( Click here to see our countdown of their top fifteen moments on the field.)_

+

Enjolras is stunning when anger overtakes him in the middle of a match. Frankly, that is part of the reason Grantaire will sometimes deliberately let the opposition score despite the supposed stakes of the game. It’s pathetic. Enjolras’ blue eyes will turn both heated and ice cold simultaneously and he will scream, frustrated. Many a photographer has tried to capture the moment for posterity and failed in accurately portraying the overwhelming power of his anger.

(The best part is the diatribe that comes afterwards, when they’re off the field and their teammates have left the showers. Those are the only moments that Grantaire manages Enjolras’ undivided attention, and he lives for them. He almost doesn’t hear the insults anymore. Almost. The almost is why he continues to drink. He gave up long ago trying to get Enjolras’ attention through stellar goalkeeping. That earns him nothing but contempt and cold derision. They’ve had a whole season where the opposing team scored _four times_ in 38 games. That’s a damn record, and he’d gotten a sneer at the celebration and nothing but indecipherable glares from Alexandre Julien Enjolras.)

Comparatively, Enjolras is even more stunning when his anger is not borne of sportsmanship but of actual indignation, as it is right now. Grantaire can’t say he’s ever seen someone angrily shampoo their hair until today. The scent of bamboo-gingko-leaf-bubbles fills the air in a manner some would consider aggressive. Grantaire is fascinated, and Enjolras needs an outlet that is perhaps a little more durable than his blond curls.

“We weren’t that bad, surely?” Grantaire quirks an eyebrow, unable to resist needling him after today’s terrible practice. They weren’t bad, per se, but Combeferre and Courfeyrac have been playing with Enjolras since 2011, and while C-Squared may be renowned for their synergy in midfield, their Team Captain and eerily good Striker perfectly rounds off the trio. Chief, Center and Guide, some pretentious sports analyst once called it. Their dynamic is why ENB has been so successful in the last few years.

(There have been bids for Enjolras, international ones, even. Enjolras has represented France in the last two world cups, though not without railing loudly against the corruption of FIFA and the damage they do to developing countries that host their carnage. But Enjolras has publicly reiterated that what he cares about is the team and the fans, and that he’d hate to have to ever play against C-Squared. Enjolras has stayed because C-Squared stayed. Grantaire has stayed because his anonymous art doesn’t pay bills or finance sufficient intoxication at the level he prefers. And because to lose even the tiny part of Enjolras’ derision masquerading as attention he gets from moments like this one would be unbearable.)

“They’re saying I can’t even talk about them,” Enjolras presses out through clenched teeth. He looks livid. It’s probably been gnawing at him for the entire day if he is desperate enough to blurt it out to Grantaire after one admittedly transparent attempt to rile him up.

“C-squared put them in a shitty spot by fighting back, and while they can deny the homophobia allegations for the time being, your input on the situation would make it harder on Tholomyès.”

“He forced them out,” Enjolras seethes. “I should have a right to voice my opinion. Am I not a free citizen?”

“Course,” Grantaire shrugs, “ENB is sponsored by backwards, conservative asshats that care more about what those two stick up their butts than the games… rather lose two players than two million in pocket change.”

“You’re pathetic,” Enjolras accuses, whirling on him. His blond curls whip around as he does, drenched and sticking to his skin upon impact. Either Enjolras lacks any sort of self-consciousness or he truly does not care that they are both very naked as he steps way too closely into Grantaire’s space.

(He’d never describe Bamboo and Gingko Leaf as a heady scent, but it’s doing a stellar job of clouding his mind right now. That, and the aforementioned naked proximity. Good lord.)

“Me? Most definitely, Apollo, that fact is well-established. Just as much as you’re set in your persistently naïve idealism. All is right in the world if you are angry and I am useless.”

“Idealism?” Enjolras scoffs, “This is about basic human decency, I hardly think that’s too much to ask. They’re being discriminated against based on their sexual orientation, that should be _illegal_.”

“Isn’t, though, is it?” Grantaire points out, turning off the shower spray and reaching for a towel to sling around his waist. “Those two may have been forced into quitting, but quit they did, mid-season, in fact, and that leaves ENB on higher ground, legally, especially now that they’ve managed to muzzle you.”

“Someone has to say something.”

Grantaire sighs, takes one last look at Enjolras’ wet, angry form and leaves without further argument. His heart has taken enough of a battering for today.

+

“You,” Enjolras approaches with determination as he is standing in front of the bus having a smoke the next morning. It’s still too early for this shit, but most of their remaining teammates have already arrived and they are basically set to leave. There’s no reason for Enjolras to verbally reproach him, he normally settles for pointed glares and silent fuming in the face of Grantaire’s nastier habits.

“Leave me be, this is my last one for the day,” Grantaire rolls his eyes and takes a deep drag, “Coach already said no drugs at camp, and I’m shivering in the face of your disapproval. I’ll behave…mostly.”

“No,” Enjolras shakes his head, “They haven’t said _you_ can’t give an interview about what happened with Combeferre and Courfeyrac.”

Grantaire takes a deep breath as he considers this.

“They haven’t, because they know there’s no need, yeah? I was their teammate, you’re their closest friend. Nobody wants to interview me. Nobody still wants my opinion on anything, much less the subtle nuances of discrimination in our jobs. I am known for drunken, senseless ramblings and not entirely credible, in part thanks to your own efforts.”

(Ah, Grantaire remembers 2015 fondly, when they’d lost a game that season quite spectacularly. In Grantaire’s very weak defense, Enjolras had just gotten a very favorable haircut, and Grantaire was no less pathetic over him two years ago than now. It could reasonably be argued that in that regard he has been steadily increasing. Only, after the game some reporter overheard Enjolras, in his anger, say that Grantaire was essentially useless to a soothing Combeferre, and that perhaps he’d have done better if he hadn’t spent the night before drinking as he does so often. There weren’t many prospects to ruin in the first place, but that put paid to any sort of upward mobility in terms of a career, which had already been dwindling steadily at 29. A certain viral video followed, and the rest was history. Grantaire isn’t too beat up over that aspect, although the words did sting.)

“I apologized for that.”

“You apologized that the reporter overheard it,” Grantaire dismisses. He isn’t upset to still be with ENB, because Enjolras is, against all odds, still with ENB. “That isn’t the same.”

“I don’t regret my words. You were hungover that day.”

“Slightly,” Grantaire agrees, feigning pleasantness, “As was Courfeyrac, for that matter, and he received no castigation when he missed the goal by miles several times. Worry not, Apollo, I am well aware of the particular brand of disdain you hold for me and my general uselessness to your causes. I can tweet a few things if you really want me to, but they won’t do anything.”

“Do it,” Enjolras says, then takes Grantaire’s cigarette and stomps it out on the ground with passion. He looks straight into his tar-blackened soul: “Those things kill, Grantaire. And you’re basically smoking beaver anus.”

+

 **ENB Paris Goalkeeper can’t contain himself in the face of unfairness - Source:** Les Jeunes, 7/11/2017

_Do you ever get the impression that there might be something boiling beneath the seemingly calm surface of a still-reeling ENB Paris?_

_After owner F. Tholomyès assured fans and backers that they had new strategies lined up, the fuss around C-Squared’s sudden departure seemingly died down, only for Giuseppe Grantaire (31) to breathe the fire right back into the situation by tweeting this from Auvergne, where the team is preparing for their remaining five matches of the season._

_[Screengrab: @Granthair: hey @BahorelABC, remember when you were still with ENB? -6/11/2017, 16:02, EST_

_@BahorelABC: @Granthair oh hi R, I sure do. Are you saying you miss me? -6/11/2017, 16:04, EST_

_@Granthair: @BahorelABC remember when @ENBofficiel tried to get you to break up with your supermodel girlfriend/wife after someone leaked she went through HRT? Good times! Link to article from 2010 here. - 6/11/2017, 16:06, EST_

_@BahorelABC: @GrantHair I have fond memories of being fired for staying by her side through the ordeal. :) – 6/11/2017, 16:07, EST_

_@GrantHair: @BahorelABC very fun! What a reasonable response to a perfectly normal situation that wasn’t at all degrading for @MichelleBahorel  - 6/11/2017, 16:09, EST_

_@MichelleBahorel: @GrantHair What a fun, coincidental thing to bring up with no relevance to current happenings! Btw you haven’t been over for dinner in a month, your godchild misses you. -6/11/2017, 16:32, EST]_

_Before ENB Paris rose through the ranks after the spectacular 2011/2012 season, Étienne Bahorel was considered the teams’ most valuable asset. There was little media coverage about his departure in 2010, but the article Grantaire linked seemed genuine and surprising to many fans, once more drawing attention to the long history of criticism ENB and its backers have faced. Since his departure Bahorel has been a backer for ABC 1832, but has retired from sports, stating: “I’m perfectly fine being the stay-at-home Dad for our kid, Michelle is rocking and doing what she loves. I just want to support her and make our family a happy one.” (Source: 2010 interview with Buzzfeed YouTube, “Benefits of adoption and 5 ways that Fatherhood changes you.”)_

_It is an unusually poignant position for the ENB Goalkeeper to take. In interviews he has made a point of refusing to satisfactorily answer any question that isn’t about the game after rumors of possible addictions started circulating around early 2012 and made journalists hound him relentlessly until he had to change his address twice. ( Click here for our favorite Giuseppe Grantaire interview distraction moments or here for a timeline of his scandals, from Python-like reflexes to passing out during halftime, August 2013.) _

_It is important to remember that Grantaire valiantly leapt to C-Squared’s defense when they announced their decision to leave, though that misspelled atrocity of a tweet was deleted just hours after it went online. (You can still view it here in all its glory, thanks to the very dedicated @HetweetsthedaRndestthings)_

_What’s more, Michelle Bahorel’s following as an international runway star and the first trans Asian Vogue Italia cover model is a considerably larger one (clocking in at about 4.3 Million as of 6/11/2017), and her involvement has re-awakened popular interest in the inner workings of ENB Paris._

_[@angryfeminasian: “Homophobia? In MY structurally organized institution of toxic masculinity?” IT’S MORE LIKELY THAN YOU THINK.  – 6/11/2017, 19:32, EST_

@ _Gayactivism: honestly is anyone really surprised? @ENBofficiel try and explain this away, I fuckin’ dare you. – 6/11/2017, 16:59, EST]_

_While Grantaire has received criticism for ‘meddling’, he hasn’t had a chance to respond to such accusations, because his account was deactivated at 6 AM this morning._

_[@ENBhools: @Granthair you just can’t leave well enough alone, can you? – 6/11/2017, 22:54, EST_

_@TholomYESSSSS: @GrantHair fuck you fkn piece of shit go suck a dick since that’s what you like – 7/11/2017, 00:32, EST_

_@FranceforFrench: @ENBofficiel is better of w/o those two [*censored by Les Jeunes for hate speech*], fite me -7/11/2017, 2:43, EST]_

_Something foul is afoot in our football league, but we’re being fair and leaving ENB Paris and its owner a chance to explain himself before we make accusations, and we encourage everyone else to do the same._

_+_

“This isn’t a group shower, you know that, right?” Grantaire hisses when the shower curtain is pulled to the side and he is abruptly faced with an even angrier looking Enjolras, who seems to have just finished putting his own hair through the ringer. He’s changed into soft, flannel pants and a t-shirt that sits too tightly on his shoulders for Grantaire not to stare. It’s unfair.

“You tweeted.”

“Why are you glaring at me, Apollo? You wanted me to tweet something. I fucking told you it wouldn’t do anything – you and I both know I’ve never done a useful thing in my life. It’s not even seven yet, can we leave the yelling for like fifteen more minutes?”

“Your thread got half a million retweets before they deactivated your account.”

“And now I’ve been muzzled,” Grantaire rolls his eyes, “Can you really tell me you didn’t fucking see this coming? You’re raging at something so much bigger than yourself, it’s almost heartbreaking to watch. Like a little baby going up against the Predator Alien.”

“This isn’t the time for jokes.”

“It’s either jokes or being extremely self-conscious about you being about a step away from my naked, shriveled cock. I’m just being pragmatic here.”

Sometimes Grantaire wonders where he gets the gall to think he can just say things like that to Enjolras and get away with it.

“Don’t you see why we have to keep fighting? Now more than ever? They took your twitter account from you.”

The thing about Enjolras is that he truly sounds like this is an outrage instead of the logical reaction their PR team chose in the face of his feeble attempt at generating dissent. It makes Grantaire want to wrap him up in soft blankets and hold him despite his initial urge to take him by the shoulders and shake him until he realizes he’s just exhausting himself in the long run. Sometimes Grantaire fears the world will chew up and spit out Enjolras before he turns thirty. Most days he hopes he is wrong.

“What, so we make new ones? Angrily rail some more? We did what we could and what we could do was very little. Words don’t matter against the kind of money Tholomyès has riding on the sanctity of his little team.”

“So, what, you just give up?”

“Yeah, that’s what I do.”

“Well I think that’s bullshit!”

“I’m saying, Apollo, play a good season, take up one of your five hundred offers for a better gage, get out and do all the ineffective soapboxing about the inherent discrimination that still colors our daily lives that you want.”

“It isn’t enough.”

“Nothing is ever enough, you’ll see that someday. You’re angry, Apollo, just sleep on it some more. Acceptance follows eventually.”

“Is that where you’re at?”

“I just let everything wash over me by now. You can’t win. Most days you break your neck just by living. I’ve stopped believing otherwise.”

“You’ve never believed in anything.”

“I believe in your unwavering outrage,” Grantaire sighs, resigned. “I believe in you, for what that is worth.”

“Fairly little,” Enjolras raises an eyebrow, “I would rather see you believe in humanity.” And then, so quickly that Grantaire will spend hours convincing himself he imagined it, his eyes travel downwards, following a trail of water droplets before promptly turning around and leaving.

+

**ENB narrowly cinches victory in Cannes!**

**Source:** _Soccer Updates Online France, 19/11/2017_

Fans were ready to tear their hair out until Striker and Team Captain Enjolras brought it home in the 87th minute.

_[Enjolras pictured here staring grimly into the camera in his red and black jersey, bearing the number one. Upon joining ENB and getting his number, fans started a debate on his nickname, but eventually Apollo, perpetuated by Goalkeeper Giuseppe Grantaire, won out against the fan-moniker Unjolras, an objectively lazy pun.]_

What did Coach Javert have to say on the final score?

_“I consider it a success that we managed to come out on top despite our recent setbacks. One goal isn’t something to write home about, but it could have gone worse.”_

_Reporter: You consider the departure of C-squared a setback?_

_Javert: I do. They formed an essential part of the team and right now we’re dealing with that the best we can. It is a bit like trying to write with your left hand if you’re right handed. But I believe in our capacity for ambidexterity, through rigorous, relentless training._

_Reporter: Anything to say on their relationship?_

_Javert: I wish them well._

_Reporter: What about_ the _rumors regarding homophobia in ENB’s upper echelons?_

_Javert: Next question._

_ Memorable moments, including that mind-bogglingly spectacular save from Grantaire two minutes after halftime, here.  _

+

 **Youtube** : **Enjolras Cannes Post-Game Interview, subtitled, 2min13sec.** _298,589 views, 21/11/2017_

[Enjolras is staring at the interviewer with furrowed brows, his hair clings to his forehead now that he no longer blesses the public with fancy hairclips. Subtitle reads: _RIP pink headband for breast cancer awareness 2k12-2k15 you will be missed, press f to pay your respects now folks_ ]

Interviewer: How do you feel about today’s game?

[Enjolras licks his lips. Subtitle reads: _~five million people just swooned~_ ]

Enjolras: We gave our best. I’m not inordinately exhilarated.

[Subtitle reads: _It took me 87 minutes to get a goal in. It’s below my projected efficiency rate by about 65% and very disappointing. It is time for a new patch._ Enjolras continues to focus on the reporter with disturbing intensity. Subtitle reads: _*attempt to incinerate* *death ray eyes aren’t included in AJBOT 3.5 yet_ *]

Interviewer: Is it hard to play without C-Squared there to support you?

Enjolras: No comment.

[Subtitle reads: _U wot m8? U wanna fookin’ go? I’ll install AJBOT 3.5 rn & lazer u to death I stg_]

Interviewer: Alright. What do you think made a win possible despite rather trying times?

Enjolras: Everyone was pulling their weight today. Nothing can succeed if cooperation isn’t there.

[Subtitles flash quickly as Enjolras’ eyes flit around distractedly: _like with revolutions, u kno? Gotta organize. Unionize. Heck, I should tweet about that. How many tweets is too many tweets? (1/78) doesn’t sound so bad. Very feasible. Vive la resistance. Can I send this to MyIdolFeuilly tm?]_

Interviewer: Anyone you’d like to single out for spectacular work today?

[Enjolras looks surprised to still be in front of a camera for a second. He shakes his head automatically.]

Interviewer: I thought that save after half-time is worth a pat on the back, at least.

Enjolras: It was a save, yes. Our defense was caught off-guard.

[He nods, sagely, but still seems distracted. Subtitle reads: _U know which save deserves an honorable mention? Saving the environment. Thx for coming to my ted talk. Who am I kidding that’s a meme that isn’t in my software yet._ ]

Interviewer: His track record this season is off the charts. It gives fans hope that he has been getting better.

Enjolras: His track record was never terrible.

[Subtitle reads: _Why r we talking about him when there is a revolution to plan? Who cares about his lonely soul I strive towards a larger goal_. _Many goals. All the goals_.]

Interviewer: You’ve been very critical of him in the past.

Enjolras: We haven’t had the best track record.

[Enjolras has a little twinkle in his eyes. Subtitle reads: _Ha u hear that, in the business that’s what we call a callback. I made a joke. C-Squared r u proud of me_? _Damn u for leaving me with the charismatic stuff as well. my intended demographic is the left youth_.]

Interviewer: Past tense?

[Enjolras ponders this for a long second, cocking his head.]

Enjolras: I’ve come to rely on the fact that he’s got my back when he tries. One less thing to worry about on a good day.

[Subtitle reads: _captain lyf is so stressful why don’t I have wrinkles yet? Trick question AJBOT is designed to have no visible flaws. that was patched with update haircut2.4 and has been running smoothly since 2k15 long live technology_ ]

Interviewer: On a good day?

Enjolras: That is what I said, yes.

[Subtitle reads: _did I fucking stutter m8_?]

**Popular Comment Threads:**

AJEfangirl: I love one (1) man – 562 upvotes

  * Show more comments (23)
  * AJExR: Giuseppe Grantaire ghostwrote this
  * ENB1811: Show ur sources
  * AJExR: _Giuseppe Grantaire romantically rolling his eyes at his team captain for 8 minutes straight._
  * J.S: The prosecution would also like to submit: _“I’m just a sad bastard.”_ to the court for perusal.
  * GGbae: Doctor: “You have 8 minutes to live.” Me:



Wurzelife: ‘(1/78) doesn’t sound so bad. Very feasible.’ I aM SCREAMING – 435 upvotes

  * Show more comments (78)
  * GGbae: I’m just saying it wasn’t the same w/o C-Squared, Lysande & Malahfi do a passable job but it feels stilted, they aren’t as coordinated. They don’t rlly play off one another that way yet.
  * ENBfan: they’re better off w/o them. Tholomyes was right to kick them out. Change my mind
  * SoccerFan1991: affronted gasp
  * GGbae: Blocked & reported.



LisaMelody: Alexander Julian Enjolras can fucking get it. – 332 Upvotes

  * Yaoi101: Alexandre Julien* u disgrace
  * LisaMelody: Your avatar is a disgrace stop fetishizing Asians I stg Enjolras would never give it to someone so ignorant.
  * Show more comments (224)



TheFelixCourfeyrac: Accurate af. – 1023 Upvotes

  * GGbae: OMFG IS THIS REAL?
  * TheFelixCourfeyrac: Ferre says that reality is a human construct.
  * Show more comments (445)
  * DiehaRd: Come to Brazil! <3



 

 

+

“Thanks, buddy,” Grantaire says, smiling at Feuilly through gritted teeth. “One of these days I’m going to get you to give up that recipe.”

“Great-grandmother’s herbal bandages are sacred and secret. You would have to hand-pick it out of my brain or actually make me dinner when you invite me over for it,” Feuilly shakes his head, palming disapprovingly at Grantaire’s calves.

“Keep that on there for at least three days, alright?”

“You’re the expert,” Grantaire shrugs, already chafing at the confines of the wrappings. It’s necessary though. His body isn’t getting any younger and he isn’t even very good at taking care to maintain its current level. Alcohol does nothing to stop the descent into old age. Feuilly knows, it’s in his eyes whenever he comes over and gently encourages him to maybe go easy on the stuff before games, or possibly altogether. Bahorel tends to be more direct, which is why Grantaire hasn’t been over for dinner in a while. It ruins godchild-bonding-time to hear explanations of the various ways in which he fails at being a passably functional human being.

“Sometimes I forget how colorful you can make a Polish accent sound,” Grantaire sighs wistfully, relaxing into the soft covers of the bed. “It’s a gift, you and your pretty words.”

“I do try,” Feuilly says, “Are you coming to Bahorel’s next week? Michelle called and says she misses you.”

“She says that because she is concerned that I may be spiraling.”

“Are you?”

“Potentially.”

“R…” Feuilly looks empathetic and worried in equal measure.

“He said he relies on me,” Grantaire shuts his eyes tightly, as if not seeing Feuilly’s pity might make it more bearable. “What do I make of that? Years I spend practically prostrating myself for a tiny morsel of recognition at his feet, and then he just blurts out something like that without even thinking about it.”

“Enjolras doesn’t really think about the fact that not everybody knows what he means without him saying so. He hasn’t criticized you in two years-”

“Not publicly, anyway. I’m not even worth that anymore, I just get the full intensity of his angry eyes whenever he can spare them.”

Feuilly heaves a sigh.

“You didn’t just invite me over to cure your various ails with secret recipes, and though I would gladly eat something you cooked for me, your fridge contains one cucumber and some dubious mustard. I’m not actually here for dinner, right?”

“No,” Grantaire sighs, pointing towards a pile of papers. “I think that might be interesting for your blog.”

+

 **What now? C-Squared talks about life after ENB Paris** – Source: Les Jeunes, 21/11/2017

_Good news for those loyal fans that have been holding their breath! C-Squared remains together and, from the looks of it, happy. Sources put Courfeyrac with Combeferre on his recent trip to Central Africa, where they’ve been funding schools and, more recently, developing hospitals._

_“It’s very important to us that the schools are controlled locally, and that the aid we give doesn’t essentially boil down to ‘how much money can we give French industries operating out of those countries?’ That is why Courf insisted we should stop by ourselves, talk to the teachers we are sponsoring, confer with the nurses in training at the hospitals, see what it is they need and actually provide it when we can.”_

_To fans tweeting about Courfeyrac performing his ‘wifely duties’ or calling him ‘First Lady Courfeyrac’, Combeferre had a few choice words to say as well. “I think it’s reductive and frankly disrespectful. People have always tried to dumb him down because he is naturally boisterous and charming, when in fact he is one of the smartest people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. He is very much his own person outside of being my partner. He isn’t my prop to use for the press, nor is he ‘the wife’ in our relationship. There is no wife, there will be no wife. Courfeyrac takes my ideas and pushes them through, makes them better, pitches his own for my feedback too. The ‘fistula clinics’ were entirely his brain-child after he read up on the issue at hand and how the trauma that causes them is employed in modern warfare.”_

_(See here: Tweet from Courfeyrac, ca. 2013, recommending books on the subject at hand along with a charming cry to educate oneself.)_

_As for the future, both men plan to continue in their line of activism._

_“We’ve got a platform,” Courfeyrac responds to reporters, “It would be callous of us to waste the opportunity to reach out.”_

_“We are very much aware of how privileged our lives have been up until now,” Combeferre adds, smiling at Courfeyrac as the man pushes his slipping glasses back up his nose. “A friend of our’s once said that it is every citizen’s obligation to do what they can, and we are in a position to do a lot.”_

_No points for guessing who that friend is. (See here: A compendium of AJ Enjolras’ twitter novels.)_

_“We haven’t heard anything from him,” Courfeyrac shakes his head sadly when asked about their current standing with ex-teammate and close friend Enjolras. “He’s busy trying to salvage the team after we’ve had to leave, but we’re certain that he’ll be in touch when things have calmed down some more.”_

_We hope so too! We’d hate to see that dynamic break forever._

_[Picture: The Trio standing arm in arm, marching to change France’s environmental policies. – ca. 2015]_

+

‘ **Why ENB Paris still exists despite a laundry list longer than my dry cleaning’ shocks nation. You won’t believe what went down!** – Source: 25/11/2017 Buzzfeed

With only four games left in the season for ENB Paris, the long, winding road of drama only grows longer.

For loyal fans, this season has been a bit like thinking you’ve reached an oasis in the middle of a desert, only to have it dry up before you ever get the chance to have a sip.

_[Inserted: Relatable pop culture gif that only seems vaguely appropriate to the gravitas of the situation.]_

“I can’t be the only one that feels like every news cycle is a fresh slap in the face rn, right?” One fan tweeted. Are they talking about Donald Trump and the current political mayhem or are they venting about the recent insight into C-Squared’s departure from ENB Paris and subsequently public life altogether? (This was back in October, link here in case you missed it somehow, you heathens.)

The article is a compilation of grievances, well-written and filled to the brim with juicy, juicy deets. In it, a very important question is answered. Spoiler alert: it’s because of an unending flow of monetary support to Tholomyès to doctor various cover ups of the naughtiest kind, apparently.

[ _Inserted: Whaaaaaat.gif_ ]

Since it went online at the stroke of midnight two days ago it gained loads of traction due to the author’s past association with ENB. No one but Miroslav Feuilly, ex-ENB Defense player from 2007-2010, was the author of this mischief.

[ _Inserted: Shocked_cat_number_23.gif_ ]

He broke records and hearts (just look at those sideburns, mmmmhhh, delicious) with his frank earnestness and helped France fight the good fight during several world cups, even after he transferred to a lesser known local team when an enticing offer lured him to Cracow. He moved back to Paris early this year and has been spotted at many an ABC game with Étienne Bahorel and his wife. Those two are the best of pals.

[ _Inserted: Bromance_moment_from_tvshow.gif_ ]

Speaking of the wife, Michelle Bahorel retweeted the link and added this in response:

[Screengrab: _@MichelleBahorel: @FeuillyMir_ _Friend of the people, friend of all peoples except the corrupt that need exposing. I applaud you, Miro. <3_ _-24/11/2017, 17:39 EST_ ]

Here’s what owner Tholomyès had to say about the article.

[Screengrab: _@F.TholomyesENB_ _Defamation of the worst kind – will be looking into the possibilities of a lawsuit btw – 24/11/2017, 12:55 EST_ ]

[Inserted: _He_snapped.gif, shows Tholomyes raising his eyebrows and throwing his hands into the air in despair, taken ca. 2015_ ]

Which lead us to this gem from a different spontaneously resurfaced Felix, though this one has cuter dimples and a better smile. Sorry, Tholomyes, we don’t make the rules, Courfeyrac is cuter, always has been.

[Screengrab: _@CourfHEYrac: That moment when u experiment w/ an unfamiliar acronym online and only manage to make yourself sound incredibly petty. – 24/11/2017, 13:09 EST_ ]

What’s that? Piping hot tea?

Unfortunately, Giuseppe Grantaire’s account is still mysteriously deactivated, and we’ve gotten nothing but the usual lengthy explanations on what is wrong with the world from ENB’s Captain Apollo. We’re sure R would have piped up if he could, but we’re very disappointed to have heard nothing from the usually outspoken Enjolras on this. We’ve never known him to bow down in the face of injustice, and his silence on the matter makes him complicit, in his own words. (Link: Enjolras’ cry to speak up instead of sitting down, 2011)

Still, there was this:

[Screengrab: _@ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99: @CourfHEYrac: a layer of petty wrapped tightly around a steaming pile of sexist, homophobic bullshit. Does wonders for the bouquet & general presentation. – 24/11/2017, 13:21, EST_]

Who is this newcomer to the debate, you ask? He’s called Jean Prouvaire, he’s a ginger and we love him. (Seriously, we’re obsessed. We’ve been looking at pictures of him all day. Hmm, _dreamy_.) This is the guy ABC 1832 was so hyped about recruiting from the Belgian Youth Football League. At just eighteen he’s a fresh face, and cute as a button.

[Picture: Jean Prouvaire, hair braided loosely to the side and adorned with flowers, wearing a bespoke suit. _Captioned: Prouvaire at his High School Graduation last year.]_

We can’t wait to see what you’ve got, Jean. *Wink*

Related Articles:

5 times Giuseppe Grantaire was all of us

21 Soccer players we’re totally drooling over ( + 2 we aren’t)

6 Signs that AJ Enjolras is actually a robot

25 French Words that will have you going Oh là là

You won’t believe what lengths this author went to in order to establish these two characters as gay

+

[ _@ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99: Hey @buzzfeed here’s ‘what I’ve got for you’: my pronouns are they/them, literally right in my bio, hmu when u r done pretending to be progressive and start living it – 26/11/2017, 6:03, EST]_

@AJENJ retweeted this

@AJENJ has started following @ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99

@AJENJ has liked @ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99’s tweet from 12/06/2015 ‘ _why are they talking about @E_Thenardier’s love life when she just broke a record on national television? #stopobjectifyingher’_

 _@1832allday_ has tweeted a screenshot: _HAHAHAHA AJBOT has found a new friend @AJENJ @ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99 – 26/11/2017, 7:00, EST_ ]

 _[@Buzzfeed: Sorry, @ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99, we made an oopsies! Won’t happen again! Incidentally, why are you awake at 6 AM? Young bodies need rest ;)_ - _26/11/2017, 8:24, EST_

_@ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99: @Buzzfeed it’s the best time for meditating and ranting to my plants about reporters that purposefully get my pronouns wrong and then play it off like erasing my identity is on par with an ‘oopsie’ :/  - 26/11/2017, 12:32 EST_

_@Buzzfeed: New article_ , link here: “Five times Jean Prouvaire was outrageously sassy and we loved it---” _-26/11/2017, 14:04, EST_ ]

[@ _AJENJ: @Buzzfeed: The problem with getting your news from a source that really only reproduces instead of meaningfully contributing by commenting on… (1/52) – 26/11/2017, 16:55 EST_

_@AJENJ: …it’s complete regurgitation, is what that is, and what is more it perpetuates a sort of vacuous consumption of whatever flashy new thing they get caught on, easy to swallow, lackadaisical, for lack of a better word… (32/52) -26/11/2017, 17:37 EST_

_@AJENJ: Because heaven forbid they might actually have to think about the ways this world still needs to change. No, let’s just post pictures we haven’t spent even two minutes getting background on while we objectify an 18 year old, still underage in the picture you posted… (39/52) – 26/11/2017, 17:49 EST_

_@AJENJ: It’s disgusting, frankly, that you rail against female objectification but have no problem doing it to those that don’t fit into your narrow category of who doesn’t deserve to be reduced to their appearance… (45/52) – 26/11/2017, 18:01, EST_

_@AJENJ: …what happened to intersectionality? (52/52) – 26/11/2017, 18:22, EST_

_@FeuillyMir: @AJENJ, well said! My thoughts exactly. – 26/11/2017, 19:10, EST_

_@AJENJ: @FeuillyMir thank you! :) – 26/11/2017, 19:15, EST_

_@AJExR_ replied _: AJBOT is freaking out I choked he fangirls hard._

 _@Feministeethory_ replied _:  @AJExR he literally just wrote :) go sit down._

_@AJExR: @Feministeethory: pls watch this and then tell me he isn’t completely losing his shit right now]_

[Video link: **Interview excerpt of Enjolras, title “Fanjolras strikes again” uploaded to Youtube on 05/04/2014, 46,295 views**.

“…Someone who I think does great work in that area is Miroslav Feuilly, who still plays in Poland but has also started activism campaigns there to get wider recognition for topics that actually matter. That’s great, you know? I admire that so much, using the influence you have to do something meaningful.”

The reporter interrupts him: “Is that your answer on how you think the game today could have gone differently?”

Enjolras, defensively: “I said what I said. Quote me.”]

+

Enjolras stops him with a hand to his elbow as he heads off the field after grueling back-to-back practice sessions that were nothing short of torture, only made worse by the slight hangover he is still nursing.

(It was necessary to drink though, it was so necessary to brace himself for the full impact of being confronted with Enjolras again after two weeks of holiday-imposed isolation from those perpetually angry eyes.)

“Grantaire, a word?”

“I maintain that letting half the penalties in during practice is good for morale,” Grantaire tries to defend himself before the accusations starts. He doesn’t think he can take it today.

“I couldn’t care less for morale,” Enjolras says gravely. “You know Miroslav Feuilly, if I am not mistaken.”

He is, in fact, not mistaken, and both of them know it, because when Enjolras transferred to ENB he talked about Feuilly with yet unmatched admiration in his eyes. Grantaire can’t fault him, if anyone is worthy of it, it would be Feuilly. This is just Enjolras trying extremely hard to casually direct a conversation, and it is unsettling. Enjolras and soft approaches are like magnets that repel each other all the more the harder they try to come together.

“We played together in the old days, you _know_ that.”

The few times they spoke, back in 2011 before Enjolras realized what an immense waste of space and general fuck-up Grantaire is, Feuilly was a prominent subject between them.

“ _You’re_ the one that gave him the documents for his article,” Enjolras says, as if that were of any importance. It almost sounds like an accusation, if he’s being honest. Well, he didn’t know what else he expected. Perhaps a spoken essay on Feuilly’s general wholesomeness.

“Worth a shot to once more demonstrate how nothing you dig up on the big guys dislodges them. Tholomyès sent his lawyers after Feuilly for libel, and that’s gonna cost him a pretty penny while nothing ever changes.”

“But you tried,” Enjolras still has a firm grip on his elbow. Any sensation has been burned out of him where they connect, everything is overwhelming.

“You _asked_ me to, Apollo,” Grantaire defends himself, testily. He should be drunk for this, not hungover. He miscalculated gravely, but he didn’t expect Enjolras to seek him out, much less touch him. That just doesn’t happen.

“Grantaire…” he says, exhaling, “Thank you.”

“Don’t thank me for that,” Grantaire yanks his arm away, feeling his own anger surface but forcing it down again, “We achieved nothing. _Nothing_. And you’ve still got that look in your eyes that says you aren’t giving up.”

“Of course, I’m not giving up, don’t be ridiculous. This whole thing is picking up more traction every day as the people rally to our side. Change is coming.”

“You’re delusional.”

Enjolras gives him a hard look, caustic and damning. All of Grantaire’s anger leaves him.

“And you’re impossible.”

“Funny,” Grantaire winces, “My ex used to say that too.”

+

 **New Year – New Team? ENB neither wins nor loses. Source:** Football Updates France Online, 15/01/2018

_With just four games left this season, ENB has been working hard to defend their spot as number 1. But today’s game came as something of a surprise, something that has become almost unheard of in recent ENB memory. 1:1 against Marseille’s Team._

_Something was definitely off, everyone agrees._

_Goalkeeper Giuseppe Grantaire had a rather blasé outlook, all things considered. “We’re still in the lead, aren’t we? That’s all anyone cares about here, that we’re still doing what we’re supposed to and bringing in the profits. The machine runs, though it creaks and groans with wrenches in its engines.”_

_He’s been known to take a rather cynical view in recent years, but fans thought the long-time favorite might have rallied recently, after he took to twitter – this was before his account was mysteriously deactivated – and mustered some stellar, mostly error-free rhetoric. Some said they hadn’t seen this much sarcastically clever passion since 2008, when he joined then Teammates Étienne Bahorel and Miroslav Feuilly in their efforts on behalf of equal pay for the French Female National Team. Alas, they are all in for a disappointment, his cynicism remains._

_Interviewer: The other team scored today, that’s become a rarity with you._

_Grantaire: Hadn’t noticed. Don’t particularly care. Are we done here?_

_Interviewer: One more question. What would you say to those that claim your Apollo has been slacking off and is looking for greener pastures elsewhere?_

_Grantaire: Depends on what you call slacking, doesn’t it? I know you see his twitter account, it’s open on your phone right now. He just took his Five Minute Angry Shower and is now releasing the dissertation from hell on why he thinks it’s bullshit that women in sports continue to be belittled. And people eat that shit up. It just encourages him further._

_Interviewer: You wouldn’t say men make for better sport?_

_Grantaire: I think anyone who thinks that can kindly take it up with Apollo. Frankly I don’t waste my breath on that crap anymore._

_Ouch, hard criticism from the Goalkeeper, but Enjolras proves with his longest twitter thread yet (clocking in at 81 tweets in the span of 143 minutes), that he intends to persevere. _

+

“You’re right,” Enjolras says, falling into step next to him on the way to the restaurant for a celebratory dinner with Tholomyes and Javert. They’ve fallen behind a little bit and it feels a little conspiratorial.

“Finally seen the senselessness of it all? Congratulations, Apollo, I’ll buy the first round.”

“No,” Enjolras shakes his head vehemently, his freshly washed curls bounce with verve. “Change is possible, but words aren’t enough. Not anymore. We tried that, it’s time to go a step further. Or ten. Give them no choice but to take us seriously.”

“Uh,” Grantaire furrows his brows, running the probability of Enjolras taking drastic measures in his head and worrying slightly at the chances. “Come back to my place after this, I want to talk something through with you.”

“Enjolras,” he says taking a deep breath, “I am not your activism buddy.”

He wouldn’t call them anything past teammates, to be honest. And even that feels like more of a privilege than Grantaire should be allowed in his wretchedness.

“Bullshit,” Enjolras short circuits his brain again by touching his elbow and yanking him to a stop. “You gathered material for articles you claimed were useless _because I asked you to_. You want the same things I want, Grantaire. You want to see things changed. I know you do. Feuilly sent me some of the stuff you wrote when you helped him…”

“That’s ten years in the past, I’ve been made aware of life’s futility. You know nothing about what I really want.”

“Say yes, Grantaire,” Enjolras’ voice has dropped to a whisper, enticing though it shouldn’t be as he ignores Grantaire’s weak protests. Enjolras looks damningly good, with his long lashes and cold-bitten red cheeks and red woolen cap over the still damp longer strands of his mane. “Please, say yes,” he entreats again.

Grantaire says yes.

(As if he could have said anything else.)

+

 **Spotted: Giuseppe Grantaire pays his Apollo a late night visit** – Source:19/01/2018, Buzzfeed

_After perhaps a few too many drinks – as is his habit – at the celebratory dinner, Grantaire (31) was photographed leaving Enjolras’ (25) house in the early hours of the morning, wrapped tight in a coat and looking generally displeased about the state of things, as he is wont to._

_When asked about it by reporters, Grantaire had only a slightly disgruntled sound at the ready and then promptly turned away, staggering home in a comically intoxicated fashion. (It’s a classic move of his, up there with rhapsodies on the virtues of Apollo and pointedly chugging his drink to avoid an answer. Alas, there was no drink at the ready.)_

_Tholomyès, the team’s owner, had this to say: “They make for an interesting dynamic, and for the upcoming games their interaction with one another is crucial, that means overcoming whatever differences they may have had in the past in favor of defending our title. They’re professionals and I’m glad I can count on them.”_

_Coach Javert, while scratching his neck and looking mostly baffled, “They play off each other well when they can get it together long enough, I’ve been telling them for years. Better late than never, I say. I’m a patient man.”_

+

 _@BahorelABC_ tweeted: _hey @Buzzfeed, how much of an asshole do you have to be to make fun of someone who has admitted to a problem he is trying hard to get under control? – 19/01/2018, 9:31, EST_

 **Buzzfeed retracts article and extends halfhearted apology to ENB Goalkeeper for insensitive commentary on his substance abuse. – Source:** Les Jeunes, 20/01/2018

 **Enjolras and Grantaire photographed talking seriously at ENB practice, fans hope for end to tensions between them – Source:** Journal de Paris, 25/01/2018

 **Enjolras on Grantaire: “He’s been trying.” Praise or Veiled criticism? – Source:** Les Jeunes, 1/02/2018

+

_@Granthair: guess who got their twitter account back? @AJENJ did u miss me? – 06/02/2018, 2:43, EST_

_@AJENJ: @Granthair i saw you yesterday evening. – 6/02/18, 6:14, EST_

_@Granthair_ replied _: not a no, Apollo ;)_

_@BossAigle: @Granthair alright mate! Pop by my place later and we’ll celebrate your rediscovered freedom. You can finally meet @ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99 – 6/02/2018, 10:19, EST_

_@Granthair_ has started following _@ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99_

 _@ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99_ has started following _@Granthair_

_@ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99: @Granthair @BossAigle: 10 reasons Lesgles has the best ideas, number 7 will shock you! :D – 6/02/2018, 10:47, EST_

_@BossAigle_ replied _: I try, comrade, I try._

 _@GrantHair_ retweeted and added _: Poignant and intriguing! Now that’s what I call true journalism @Buzzfeed take notes. – 6/02/2018, 11:00, EST_

_@JollllyABC: @GrantHair @BossAigle @ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99…Four out of Five Doctors approve – 6/02/2018, 11:09, EST_

_@ChettaSpatafora_ retweeted and added: _Tfw Bae gets into the cough syrup and starts using the Royal We to talk about himself…_   _\- 6/02/2018, 11:22, EST_

_@Buzzfeed: New article! 7 reasons we think there’s a polyamorous triad happening right under our noses in ABC 1832, read it here! – 6/02/2018, 14:58 EST_

_@BossAigle: @Buzzfeed – did you know ENB Paris stands for Empereur Napoleone Buonaparte Paris? Why doesn’t anybody ever look into that outrage of residual imperialism right under our noses? :-(  - 6/02/2018, 23:30 EST_

_@ChettaSpatafora_ replied: _They can’t handle the truth bby, it’s okay, they aren’t real news anyway. Try selling that idea to Le Monde.  – 6/02/2018, 23:33 EST_

_@JollllyABC: @ChettaSpatafora @BossAigle…. Four reasons you shouldn’t leave someone waiting in the cold confines of a king sized bed, number 3 blew our minds! #rude #noregardformybadcirculation #bedgate2k19 – 6/02/2018, 23:41, EST_

_@GrantHair: @JollllyABC – are you perhaps interested in a career change w/ @ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99 as your investigative partner on the quest for journalistic integrity? -6/02/2018, 23:56, EST_

_@ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99: @JollllyABC meet me at ABC Café to discuss once u get ur 7 hrs in, young bodies need it after vigorous exercise to improve circulation! -7/02/2018, 00:19, EST_

 

+

 **What ENB’s Captain Thinks about the Final Game of the Season – Source:** Le monde du Sport, 15/02/2018

_It’s a rare thing for a traditionally private person to suggest meeting up for an interview on Valentine’s Day, but ENB’s Alexandre Julien Enjolras (25) is a rare sort in general._

_With just one game left to decide whether or not they will defend their title, Enjolras presents a composed, confident picture as we are treated to one of his rare smiles._

_“We’ve got a plan, changed things up a bit again,” he insists._

_“You’ve been spotted more often recently with Giuseppe Grantaire, your goalkeeper. What has been happening there?”_

_“He’s been stepping up in the face of our setbacks, and I appreciate his help. That is all.” His tone brokers no argument._

_“You’ve played Tolouse before, haven’t you?”_

_“We have,” Enjolras agrees, his forehead wrinkling as he thinks back to 2015 and the somewhat humiliating defeat. “Things are different now. I think I’ll get my way.”_

_Those interested can tune in on the 21 st of February at 15:00, when both teams will get the rematch everyone in France has been clamoring for!_

Related Articles:

Toulouse Team Captain Sneers in the Face of ENB as Competition

Why it is time for Tholomyès to either retire with a modicum of grace or fold – Op Ed by guest writer Miroslav Feuilly

Marius Pontmercy continues to be ‘unbothered’ by disinheritance, takes a job in China as translator w/ his wife Ambassador Fauchelevent and expected child

Éponine Thenardier on female discrimination in competitive sports

+

No goals have fallen by half-time, and Grantaire is distinctly aware of the fact that they might go into penalty shoot outs and their plan might then promptly be ruined.

“Hey,” Enjolras comes to stand in front of him, stiffly and visibly bothered by the cold despite a sheen of sweat covering his face. “So, things aren’t going as discussed, are they?”

“I can’t make it too obvious. They’ll know if I’m throwing it and then they’ll just switch me out. Parnasse is waiting for his debut chance, and he’s good. He’d see it through.”

“I know,” Enjolras nods, “Today of all days our defense chooses to completely step up their game. It’s vexing.”

Vexing is not the word Grantaire would choose – Enjolras has been putting the team through the ringer in recent weeks, and it has produced the expected results. Their captain had played along to keep Tholomyès unsuspecting and mollified, but it is not within his capacity to do things halfway.  

“I can still throw it if you want me to,” Grantaire runs a hand over his face, tired and longing desperately for a drink. Enjolras’ increased attention in the last two weeks has been grating on him, settling around him like a weird high. The comedown is sure to be terrible, and yet he keeps asking for more by not putting in the distance he should. “Symbolic value, whatever. You’re into that shit, aren’t you?”

“Change of plans,” Enjolras explains with a shake of his head, “I want us to win, and I want us to make it look like a real struggle, build tension.”

“You have a game plan in mind?”

“I do, but I need you to also be able to convincingly feign some surprise, so I can’t tell you,” Enjolras looks a little on edge, but his determination is, as ever, unshakeable. He’s made of tougher stuff than that. “Do you trust me?”

Grantaire narrowly avoids an inappropriately honest answer.

“Yeah, sure, I’ll go along with whatever.”

Enjolras puts a hand on his shoulder and squeezes. “To arms!” He whispers, and Grantaire can’t shake the feeling of his hands that lingers even after they part. Grantaire feels vaguely like he is sealing his own tragic fate. Well, he supposes, at least the choice is his, in a way, however inevitable the reality of it.

+

They go into penalty shootouts. Grantaire holds. Toulouse’s keeper holds. Grantaire holds. The other guy holds. Three rounds later, Enjolras steps up to shoot, and gets it right into the upper left corner. The roar across the stadium is loud, hopeful, as Grantaire watches his teammates thump Enjolras on the back, congratulatory and ecstatic. Grantaire steps back into the goal with dread settling uneasily in his stomach. He does fine under pressure, but less fine when the pressure comes from Enjolras relying on him. Grantaire has never felt less suited to the task.

He makes eye contact with Enjolras and he wants to throw up. There’s so much expectation in those eyes, wonderfully encouraging, almost gentle for a second. He’s mouthing something at Grantaire. _Work for it_ , his lips and eyes remind him. There was a plan. Enjolras has a plan. Grantaire can do this. He has to.

Grantaire lets the ball through. He makes a good show of throwing himself in the right direction, his stomach protesting violently. The opposing team’s fans answer the cheers. Toulouse starts chanting their taunts and Grantaire remembers 2015 with some chagrin. He’d been distracted then.

Montparnasse scores for them, obviously ecstatic, proud, and trying his hardest to appear cool as Enjolras nods at him. 

Once more Grantaire makes uncomfortably severe eye contact with his Apollo. This time Enjolras smiles breathlessly and the pounding in Grantaire’s ears drowns out everything else. Enjolras has never smiled at him before.

Toulouse’s number 7 steps up to the task and shoots. Grantaire throws himself and hopes he made the right call. It’s a split-second decision, and you gotta stick with it once you’ve made it. There are no takebacks during penalties.

The ball hits his arms and he curls himself around it protectively, feeling the impact of the ground reverberate through his legs and a shooting pain in his calves. Deafening noise disorients him as someone declares the game over. The ball drops from his hands, and then Enjolras is throwing himself into his arms. Grantaire stumbles but manages to stay upright, barely, his knees protesting under the added weight.

He probably passed out. Because there is no way Enjolras would go as far as to kiss him in front of a full stadium – there are live cameras here.

(Who is he kidding, that’s exactly what Enjolras would do. He’d rip his clothes off and offer himself up on an altar of blood if he thought it would get his point across. He can’t believe he didn’t even consider it.)

+

 **“I couldn’t…not,” says ENB Captain about kissing teammate on field after historic win.** – Source: Les Jeunes, 21/02/2018

“It was like something out of a movie,” one fan describes, “We were totally on edge that it didn’t even register until the cameras picked it up. That last save from R was legendary, you haven’t seen something that instinctive in years from him, he was like a fucking snake with those reflexes, absolutely incredible, what a guy. I had just turned to my date to tell her about it, when she asked me if they were together, because if so, that was ‘absolutely cute’.

And then there they were, Apollo holding onto R like a lifeline and kissing the living daylights out of him. I mean, R was definitely dazed for a second there, but I know an enthusiastic response when I see one.”

He puts the general feeling amongst ENB fans into words. Now that was a plot twist we didn’t see coming. Grantaire was nowhere to be found after that infamous kiss, (The Youtube clip has now amassed over three million views in four days) and has not been available for commentary, but Enjolras braved the reporters afterwards with a sheepish look in his eyes and a schoolboy grin more reminiscent of one Felix Courfeyrac than the stoic AJ fans have affectionately dubbed AJBOT.

When asked whether the kiss was planned to happen the way it did, Enjolras denied it. Upon further questioning as to what went through his mind, he had this to say:

“He had my back, and when I realized that we’d won, that he’d won it for us, I couldn’t…not kiss him.”

“Are you gay?” One reporter dared to ask.

“I am,” Enjolras confirmed without hesitation. (It checks out, no relationship to a woman was ever disclosed or even supposed, apart from rumors that popped up after various meetings with Paris PM Captain Éponine Thenardier, which were quickly dispelled by the lady in question with a truly exhaustive eye roll and a middle finger.)

“What does your outing mean for your future career?”

Enjolras, after clearing his throat and deliberating for a few seconds: “I wouldn’t have chosen to come out, what happened just now was…” He takes a moment to gather himself, then continues, “One moment, I’m still reeling. ENB Paris is a hostile environment for people like me, which is why I wanted to avoid this at all cost. I love our fans and I love the support we’ve got through them. But I am under no illusions that it is time for me to leave. It was made clear to Courf and Ferre, and I was forbidden expressly from commenting on the matter. We’ve defended our title, and if I get to stay for another season I’d be surprised.”

“Are you and R an item?”

“We are not, as of this moment, together,” Enjolras chews on his lower lip, “I don’t think he was at all aware of my feelings, truthfully I think I surprised him, even more than I surprised myself. I know there’s a conversation to be had with him, but I can’t speak for him and what the future holds for him.”

“You’ve been quoted as calling him useless,” someone says.

“I did say that two years ago,” Enjolras confirms, “He has unfairly borne the brunt of my frustration over the years, and it is something I am working on.”

“Are you optimistic that you’ll work things out?”

Enjolras runs an awkward hand through his hair. He shrugs. He can’t say, and he doesn’t want to say any more.

_+_

**AJ Enjolras to sign with ABC 1832 under new trainer JVJ, but where is R?**

**Source:** Les Jeunes, online edition, 15/04/2018

_@ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99: @AJENJ gr8 first practice, comrade_

[ _Picture: Enjolras points proudly at green leaves woven into Prouvaire’s long braid, as Prouvaire has an arm around his waist. Both are smiling. Enjolras has a few stray leaves in his curls. Caption: Apollo and Aphrodite, photo by @CourfHEYrac_ ]

_It’s official, Enjolras has announced that he has chosen ABC 1832 in favor of ENB Paris, where he no longer feels comfortable, despite his assurances that the fans have been great. “The response has been overwhelmingly positive,” he told reporters, “You can’t win them all at once, but it’s been a source of comfort.”_

_He has been less open to discuss what exactly happened with Giuseppe Grantaire after that passionate kiss on the field. ( Watch it again here.) “I know people are invested,” he concedes, “But I’d appreciate it if we could be given privacy to come to terms with what happened and see if we can work something out.”_

_Other than a short note about retiring from sports altogether, Giuseppe Grantaire has been eerily silent on everything. His twitter account hasn’t been deactivated – we checked, but there’s been nothing new for weeks._

_Which begs the question – what the hell is going on?_

+

Grantaire finds Enjolras sitting on his porch one late night in spring as he comes stumbling home from drunken excesses with Bahorel and Feuilly doing little to moderate his intake. He’s been avoiding the man’s calls and messages, for his own sake. Things have been objectively terrible after that kiss.

His own fault, really, for not leaving well enough alone. He just couldn’t say no to Enjolras. What else is new?

He drinks. His calves are shoddy, his knees need rest. He feels terrible.

What else is new?

“R…” Enjolras gets up, looking concerned at the state of him. “What’s going on?”

“’m drunk,” he says, blinking rapidly and leaning forward, hands on his knees, to take a deep breath. “Whatsit fuckin’ look like, ‘Pollo?”

Any hope that the Enjolras on his porch might be a mirage is dispelled when he feels cool hands on his forehead. He leans into the touch, he distantly realizes, humming at the sensation. “Cold – You’re cold.”

“We should get you to bed?”

“Bed?” Grantaire squints at Enjolras, confused. “Different or same?”

“I can’t say what the future holds but I think tonight I’d prefer the couch,” Enjolras swallows, looking at him intently. Grantaire cocks his head and falls deep into the pastime of staring into blue pools of judgement.

+

There’s a throbbing behind his skull and the light is unfairly blinding when Grantaire comes to. His mouth feels dry as fuck and his entire body protests at the slightest movement.

And then, to top things off, there is a sleeping blond angel of death on his couch.

Enjolras has one of Grantaire’s red blankets wrapped around him like a cloak, looking suitably regal in the pale morning light. Grantaire makes a point of dismissing that particular image until he has had some coffee.

At the first sound of the machine starting, Enjolras stirs awake. His curls are messy, knotted from unpeaceful repose and sticking out all over the place. “Hey,” he says, eyes hooded and lips slightly swollen. He wipes a hand across his face, and blinks himself to alertness. “Coffee?”

“Caffeine is a drug, Apollo. Color me shocked.”

Enjolras frowns, “I have been known to make exceptions.”

“Hardly. This from the guy that turned down a million-dollar sponsorship deal because their shoes weren’t fully vegan?”

“Leather kills.”

“Never said it didn’t. You’ve got principles, is what I mean to establish by my needling, and I didn’t think you were the type to make the exceptions you just claimed to.”

“Just give me the coffee, please?” Enjolras pinches the bridge of his nose and Grantaire stops pushing his luck, handing it over without further comment. The contents go down like they aren’t piping hot and not for the first time does Grantaire wonder how someone like Enjolras can possibly be real.

He sets the mug down with purpose, and then takes a deep breath. “I want to talk to you. Do you need anything beforehand?”

“Other than something to replenish my general lack of fortitude? I could spike my coffee. Do I need to be drunk for your chastisement?”

“I don’t intend to chastise,” Enjolras pouts, “I’m sorry that I seem to have given you the impression that our interactions have to be antagonistic, I wasn’t actually fully aware of that until recently. I regret it deeply if you felt like you constantly had to put up walls around me.”

“Meaning you talked to Combeferre about me,” Grantaire assuages.

“How did you know?” Enjolras looks genuinely surprised.

“Combeferre stopped me from confessing my undying devotion to you in the now infamous sad bastard video. He knows. Has known. Will know.” Grantaire makes a few vague hand motions in the air for dramatic purposes.

There’s a clip on the internet of Combeferre sternly clapping a hand over Grantaire’s already open mouth and tucking him under his arm, shielding him from reporters at his worst. Grantaire is grateful, in hindsight, even though at the time what he wanted was just to get things out there. He thought he would choke if he didn’t tell someone. What he felt for Enjolras was eating him up from the inside. Combeferre was good about that, though they never spoke of it again after that night, despite well-meant offers.

“I see,” Enjolras nods. “I am not here to talk about Combeferre.”

“No?” Grantaire’s voice goes squeakier as it climbs an octave, “Shame, he’s very worthy of being discussed with reverence.”

“Unquestionably,” Enjolras agrees, “But I want to talk about us.”

“There is an us?”

“There’s certainly a kiss between us, if nothing else. The past few weeks have been somewhat…illuminating.”

“Look,” Grantaire juts his chin out. “You don’t need to worry that I’ll start bothering you now. You kissed me to prove your point, Tholomyès is pretty much done for, you won. I’ve been keeping my distance, haven’t I? You’re the one who showed up at my door in the middle of the night. If you’re that worried just get a restraining order and you’ll have your reassurance on paper.”

“Why would I want to get a restraining order?” Enjolras, baffled, visibly recoils.

“You tell me,” Grantaire shrugs, “You say you’re here for something, and that’s what I’ve concluded to be a likely reason.”

“It isn’t,” Enjolras assures him, curls flapping as he shakes his head.

“Then why?”

“Because I want to explore the possibility of a more permanent arrangement of ‘Us’.”

Grantaire can’t speak. He drinks coffee, his body feels too large for his skin, everything itches. He can’t have heard that right. Where’s the whiskey when you need it? He must have some left. He’s always got a reservoir for hard times. This is the hardest of times, even Feuilly would likely agree.

“Grantaire?” Enjolras asks, after the silence has lingered too long between them.

“You spend six years calling me useless and dressing me down for my lack of everything, and now you want to ‘explore’? Please, whatever pity party your riveting conversations with Combeferre turned you onto, spare me.”

“When have you known me to be prone to pity?”

“You’ve shown yourself to be fully capable of surprising me,” Grantaire shrugs, “And I don’t really know what to make of your character beyond your role of Captain and insufferably self-righteous activism.”

“Grantaire,” Enjolras scowls, stopping his instinctive movement towards the Whiskey bottle he has finally located beneath the sink. “If you want things to stay the way they’ve been for the last six years, I respect that. Nobody is saying you have to date me if that isn’t your desire.”

“Not my desire,” Grantaire repeats, incredulously. He thinks there’s a giggle that slips out, unbidden. “Not my desire, he says.”

“I’ve always gotten the impression that you wouldn’t be opposed,” Enjolras crosses his arms. So, he has known about it all this time. Wonderful. As if Grantaire hadn’t already embarrassed himself enough. The concept of Enjolras’ ignorance had been the only solace during some particularly hard times.

“And now that I’ve proven myself by helping you, you magnanimously decide I’m finally worthy of a shot?”

“My reasons for wanting to date you aren’t dependent on your worth to my activism,” Enjolras protests, narrowing his eyes at Grantaire. “Though I will admit you impressed me, it’s been under consideration many times before the events of this season.”

“What?”

“I am attracted to you, Grantaire, have been attracted to you right from the start. It’s just- Grantaire, you’re _very_ frustrating.”

“Charming,” Grantaire quips. Enjolras ducks his head, hiding a smile.

“Have I convinced you?”

“I need no convincing, but I think someone should probably highlight to you why dating me is a bad idea.”

“You say that as if I haven’t written a thesis or two on the possibilities of a relationship with you and defended it to C-squared.”

“Oh,” Grantaire raises his eyebrows. Enjolras’ smile, when it appears, is an assured thing that speaks of his imminent victory.

“Oh,” he repeats, showing teeth and stepping closer. “Can I kiss you again or do you want to wait until I’ve actually dated you?”

“I’m willing to bet my breath reeks something awful right now.”

Enjolras gives him a quick, soft peck, over before it even registers. He hums. “Perhaps a trip to your bathroom, first.”

+

 _@AJENJ_ tweeted a picture: _He’s adorably useless before coffee! – 06/08/2018, 05:32, EST_

[Picture shows Grantaire, narrowing sleep-crusted eyes at the camera from where his face is smushed against a red pillow, blanket slipping off his naked shoulders. His hair is tousled and you can make out a vague smattering of bruises on his neck and shoulders.]

 _@CourfHEYrac_ replied: _Why r u already awake again at 5 AM on ur bday u giant goofball?_

 _@AJENJ_ replied: _Who said we slept?_

 _@ProuWhereHaveYouBeen99_ retweeted this and added: _Ange your Aloe plant needs TLC, tell it I say hi and get some sleep before you realize what you just made public. – 6/08/2018, 5:39, EST_

 _@CourfHEYrac: it’s a good day to be proud of our idiot son while you’re across the globe and our bed is cold @HJ_Combeferre_ _:(  - 6/08/2018, 5:41,EST_

 _@HJ_Combeferre:_ _someone get @JollllyABC on the scene before buzzfeed wakes up._ - _6/08/2018, 5:42, EST_

 _@HJ_Combeferre_ retweeted _@CourfHEYrac: go back to sleep, darling. I’ll be home soon. – 6/08/2018, 5:44, EST_

@ _JollllyABC_ : _10 reasons I hope AJ didn’t leak his own not-really-secret-relationship by accident, number 9 made me go ‘awww’ \- 6/08/2018, 6:00, EST_

 _@FeuillyMir_ : _@JollllyABC u had that at the ready! You were sitting on the biggest scoop of the year and didn’t say ANYTHING. Massive respect for timing, join my blog team. – 6/08/2019, 6:17, EST_

 _@ChettaSpatafora_ replied: _@FeuillyMir he just fanboy-screamed into his pillow like we didn’t see u at dinner last night – 6/08/2018, 6:18, EST_

 _@BossAigle_ replied: _Ruthlessly exposed – 6/08/2018, 6:19, EST_

 _@JollllyABC_ replied: _You’ve been getting coffee and donuts for twenty minutes, Bossman, come back or I am pre-emptively calling an ambulance to your location on Find My Friends. – 6/08/2018, 6:21, EST_

 _@BahorelABC_ replied: _you heard the doctor @BossAigle, get on that – 6/08/2018, 6:25, EST_

 _@Buzzfeed_ tweeted: _Whoa! We just woke up to What???_ - _6/08/2019, 9:04, EST_

+

 **Apollo and R – Exclusive Interview Transcript for Les Jeunes – Source:** Les Jeunes, 13/10/2018

_Interviewer: What a year it has been for you two. If you were to boil it down to one word?_

_Grantaire: No chance of that for him._

_Enjolras: Indicative._

_Enjolras proceeds to look at Grantaire in a supremely smug fashion, who rolls his eyes fondly and probably spawns a whole new niche of YouTube videos when he can’t stop a smile._

_Interviewer: What do you mean by that?_

_Enjolras: Why would you ask me for one word and then ask me to elaborate?_

_Interviewer: Perhaps this wasn’t as well-structured as I initially imagined it to be. But, if you would…_

_Enjolras: We’ve achieved a great deal, I would say. It gives me a reason to hope that perhaps the coming year will lead to even more change, positive change. There remains a lot to be done, there’s still so much we need to tear down, not just about our national football league…_

_Grantaire: Foolish for anyone to assume he would slow down. I recognize that expression from my mirror._

_Enjolras: You believe in me, you said it last night._

_He does not pout, but it seems to take some effort on his part. Grantaire shrugs, patting Enjolras’ knee consolingly._

_Interviewer: Anything specific you’d like to take on first? Any priorities?_

_Enjolras: You can’t prioritize when it comes to issues of social justice, all of them are interconnected in some ways – but, I’ve set up a few meetings with Éponine, and we’ll see if anything comes of it._

_Interviewer: Éponine Thenardier?_

_Enjolras: Yes._

_Interviewer: Are you saying anything more on the matter?_

_Enjolras: Not yet._

_Grantaire: That’s all you’re getting out of him, don’t bother._

_Interviewer: But you support his choice to continue or even increase his activism?_

_Grantaire: I have a vague ambition in the direction of supportiveness, yes._

_Enjolras looks at him and leans towards him to press a kiss to his temple. Grantaire reddens._

+

 _@AJENJ_ tweeted _: Why I want to get married despite the oppressive history of the marriage institution. It’s been on my mind a lot in recent weeks and I’ve finally been able to put it down in words… (1/69) – 14/03/2021, 19:51, EST_

_@AJENJ: …while originally marriage served as a way to clearly secure your inheritors, it has undergone a process of change from essentially a business transaction to a more romantic notion…(21/69) – 14/03/2021, 21:04, EST_

_@HJ_Combeferre_ replied: _I think you should definitely finish this particular thread once you have actually asked him. You’re getting ahead of yourself. – 14/03/2021, 21:05, EST_

_@AJENJ: …Picking up where we left off – 15/03/2021, 03:45, EST_

_@AJENJ: …It’s a commitment, that is what it means to me, and I’ve warmed greatly to the idea of cementing it in the eyes of the law…(54/69) – 15/03/2021, 6:33, EST_

_@AJENJ: …not to mention the general benefits of adoption, more easily accessible to spouses, or the visitation/notification rights at hospitals etc… (63/69) – 7:59, EST_

@ _GrantHair: TL;DR @AJENJ asked me to marry him. I know that’s what all of you really wanted to hear._ – _15/03/2021, 9:46, EST_

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you thought :) I look forward to every bit of feedback.


End file.
